2016 Elections Will Not Be A Walkover For NPP – Michael Ampong

Immediate past Communications Director for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Greater Accra Region, Michael Kwabena Ampong, is calling on party supporters to either prepare for a win or defeat as he predicts that the 2016 elections will not be a walkover for the NPP.

His assertion is contrary to what the newly elected executives of the NPP stated, presupposing that the 2016 elections will be won without any stress whatsoever.

In his assessment, the NPP lost the 2012 elections despite economic hardships in the country at the time, hence it will be irrelevant to rely on the current economic downturn to win the 2016 elections.

In an exclusive interview on the Gold Power Drive with Valentina Ofori Afriyie on Thursday, Michael Ampong tells party supporters to erase from their minds that the NPP will emerge victorious after the 2016 elections.

“We must come to terms with reality that the 2016 election is not going to be a walkover. I am not saying it is going to be impossible…I mean you are going into an election with a sitting president and that is the reality. We have to work hard,” he said.

The thrice defeated candidate for the National Youth Organizer position further blamed his defeat on massive vote buying at the party’s delegates’ conference, imploring party communicators to be civil in their utterances.

“Winning an election is not about insults and complaints. In 2012, weren’t people complaining about the economy? Didn’t people complain about judgment debt and made all kinds of songs? We should put in place strategies to ensure that we win the elections. Anybody who tickles himself and thinks that it is a walkover is a liar,” he added.

Michael Ampong further advised the party not to put its eggs in one basket by relying on its core support base to win the 2016 elections, noting that it would be proper to brand the party to be more attractive and appealing to the general public.

He said, “the core support base of our party cannot give us power. The party should be able to position itself to the extent that it becomes attractive to people beyond the party and if possible to the other side of the political divide.”

Michael Ampong also urged the party to work towards recapturing its strongholds which he mentioned as the Eastern and Ashanti Regions, to be able to win the 2016 elections.